A CAREER IN PEDIATRICS - A SURVEY OF PEDIATRIC SENIOR HOUSE OFFICERS IN ENGLAND AND WALES

A telephone questionnaire was targeted at 189 paediatric senior house officers (SHOs) throughout England and Wales in order to evaluate thei r attitudes towards paediatrics and gain insight into methods by which recruitment could be improved in future years. A total of 152 senior house officers were interviewed. The group consisted mainly of general practice trainees, but included 51 career paediatricians. The majorit y were female (57%) and 44% were married. Our assessment revealed a pe rceived high workload, but also showed that paediatrics remains a sati sfying specialty. Training while in post was perceived as unsatisfacto ry by 32% of those questioned. Sixty per cent reported a decline in th eir social life since starting their post. Paediatrics was seen as the busiest of a number of specialties. This perception persisted, and in fact increased, between SHO and consultant grade. It is foreseen that this ma lead to further problems in recruitment.